[Movie 308 / Day 327]
A highly unlikeable man, Sidney Young (Simon Pegg), leaves his life in London when he gets the opportunity to fulfill his ambitions and go write for a glossy celebrity magazine in New York. Hoping he’s been hired for his rapier wit and knack for bursting the bubble of the rich and famous in print, he soon discovers that he’s quite wrong and is expected to write puff pieces like everybody else… That’s something that goes against his morale fibre and he spends most of the first two thirds annoying famous people and arguing with his colleagues. Including his fellow writer Alison Olsen (Kirsten Dunst), and it’s plain from very early on that eventually Young is going to see the error of his ways, stop trying to sleep with up-and-coming starlet Sophie Maes (Megan Fox) and go after Olson instead. So, it’s a straightforward romcom then.
There are no surprises or twists to keep you on your toes, it really is as simple as it seems. And it’s fun enough, if you can get past the fact you’re meant to be rooting for an objectionable arsebag in the form of Young – something that perhaps the writers realised too, as Young becomes less and less objectionable as the movie progresses. Couple that with the fact that Young’s immediate boss is an even bigger arsebag and eventually you’ll want to see Young succeed if only because his success will inevitably mean his boss’s failure.
Jeff Bridges seems underused as the magazine’s editor, Clayton Harding; a real shame as he is the best thing on-screen by some margin. Megan Fox, while undoubtedly hot, is clearly only there because she’s undoubtedly hot; another shame because it would be nice for her to be cast for her acting talent rather than what she looks like walking through a swimming pool with clothes clinging tightly to her body. Once Young turns towards being likeable, Pegg brings out the best in what he had to work with; but his on-screen chemistry with Dunst is a bit strange and feels more like brother/sister than boyfriend/girlfriend. For her part, Dunst is at her best when her character is in the catty spiteful stage of the relationship.
Overall, it’s just another average romcom. It’s not terrible, but it’s not brilliant either. One of those flicks you’ll watch one night when it’s on TV and you’re bored – and you’ll probably enjoy it.
My Rating: 
[ IMDB rating: 6.8 / 10 | IMDB link | Running time: 110 mins ]
